


Show Me Your Scars

by zacekova



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon Compliant, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Scars, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-02
Updated: 2018-04-02
Packaged: 2019-04-17 12:59:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14189466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zacekova/pseuds/zacekova
Summary: It’s not until Lance wakes up to a streak of red across his face, stark and angry against his brown skin, that he can no longer deny he’s afraid.





	Show Me Your Scars

**Author's Note:**

> This anon [prompt/fic idea](https://shiroskitten.tumblr.com/post/172362366804/oooooh-another-soulmate-au-when-you-get-a-scar) came across my dash a few days ago and got my creative juices flowing. I hope you find this fic eventually, nonny!
> 
> There is [art](https://hardlynotnever.tumblr.com/post/180205891600/30-days-of-thanks-day-16-show-me-your-scars-by) for this now, by hardlynotever!

It’s not until Lance wakes up to a streak of red across his face, stark and angry against his brown skin, that he can no longer deny he’s afraid.

 

~~~

 

He’s got one hand braced on the porcelain sink, one touching the scar mangling his cheekbones, and a maelstrom of worry churning in his gut. This is bad. This is really bad.

It’s not the first one that’s shown up lately, not even the worst one either, to be honest. But who would go after someone’s _face_ like that? How much pain are they in? What exactly are they going through? It’s been— oh god, it’s been _weeks_ since the first scar showed up in the mirror, jagged and ugly and new. Lance was so sure it was a one-time thing, just a bad accident. Even when new ones showed up, he tried to tell himself he must have missed them, that they’d been there since the first day.

But this. He can’t deny it any longer. Someone is _hurting_ them and they’re taking their goddamn time about it. He has to do something, he has to help. But he _can’t_. He doesn’t know who they are, doesn’t know _where_ they are, doesn’t know how to find them.

He can’t do anything.

 

~~~

 

He’s always the first one up - his flawless skin takes time and if that means going to bed and getting up an hour before everyone else so he can still get his eight hours of sleep _and_ make it to class on time, well. That’s the price of beauty.

If Hunk notices he’s suddenly making more frequent trips to the store for products, he doesn’t say anything. If he notices that Lance has started applying his nightly face mask while still sequestered in his shower stall, he doesn’t say anything.

If he notices that there’s now a hefty bottle of coverup in Lance’s skin care kit, he doesn’t say anything.

 

~~~

 

Weeks become months and every few days there’s more, there’s another one, another mark to mar his flesh, ugly and red and massive and terrifying. Across his back, burrowed in his hips, snaking up his legs, wrapping around his right arm. Some days it feels like he has more scars than skin.

Worrying is pointless but it’s all he can do and it makes him sick to his stomach, restless under his blankets, distracted and unfocused in class. He’s losing sleep, too, but this is his _person_ , the one he’s meant for, and they’re hurting. Hurting terribly. They could be _dying_ and he’s stuck here doing nothing, useless.

He’s totally useless.

 

~~~

 

And then they all stop.

 

~~~

 

And then Takashi Shirogane comes back from the dead.

Takashi Shirogane didn’t die in space crashing his ship and his crew into the cold, hard surface of Kerberos; Takashi Shirogane was captured and imprisoned by aliens for over a year and has an artificial arm and a scar across his nose to prove it.

Takashi Shirogane is his soulmate.

 

~~~

 

He could tell him, he thinks. It wouldn’t be hard. Lance admired Shiro long before he ever _knew_ so it wouldn’t be hard to go forward the way most do, to change their relationship.

But…

But Shiro is _Shiro_ and he’s just _Lance_. Lance who spent more time during childhood in the ocean than hitting the books or doing anything worthwhile, who scrambled to get into the Garrison by the skin of his teeth and still didn’t make the cut until someone else dropped out, who’s only a paladin because all the others are obviously perfect for their lions and Lance was the only option left for Blue.

Lance, who woke up day after day, week after week, _month_ after _month_ with more and more scars adorning his body and he couldn’t do anything to help. Could only watch and hope and pray.

Lance, who tried to help Shiro escape Garrison custody but knows he would have failed without Keith, always Keith, Keith who is better at everything and knows Shiro and cares about Shiro and would be so good to him.

 _Lance_ , who shouldn’t even _be_ Shiro’s soulmate.

 

~~~

 

He’s barely washed his facemask off when the alarms sound, Allura’s voice calling for them over the intercom to get to their lions, get to them _now_.

His armor is on in seconds and there’s no time for anything else, no time for him to even think about anything else, and he’s flying out of the castle to face their enemies with a whoop and a grin.

 

~~~

 

He doesn’t remember forgetting until he pulls off his helmet in the lounge and Keith’s mouth falls open.

 _Quiznack_.

Everyone is staring at him, eyes widening in dawning understanding, and he can’t do this. Can’t see the pity on their faces, can’t see the rejection on…

 _Shiro_.

He slams his eyes shut before he can turn instinctively, before he can look into those soft, grey eyes, before he has to face the truth he swore would stay a secret to his grave, and he runs.

He runs.

 

~~~

 

He runs until he can’t breathe, until black specks swim in his vision and his legs give out from under him. He falls to his knees, bracing his hand against the nearest wall and clutching his chest, gasping. He didn’t mean for it to happen this way.

He didn’t mean for it to happen _at all_. None of them were ever supposed to know and now they _all_ know and Shiro will—

Booted feet appear in front of him and he flinches, curling in on himself as if that will make the figure go away, will make him disappear, will make him pretend this isn’t happening. He knows this conversation has to happen, that everything has to change, but he needs more _time_ , needs to be able to _breathe_ , needs his vision to stop blurring in front of him. “I’m sorry,” he sobs.

“What are you sorry for?” Shiro asks.

Lance shakes his head; is he really gonna make him say it? “That it’s _me_ ,” Lance says. “That it wasn’t someone stronger, more worthy. I- You were stuck with them for a _year_ and I couldn’t do _anything_ and maybe someone else could have, someone else could have saved you, but I-”

A calloused hand cups his chin and tilts his face up and Lance squeezes his eyes shut, tears leaking from under the closed lids. Shiro thumbs at them, wiping them away with a gentleness that makes Lance’s breath hitch in his chest. “You can’t blame yourself for something like that,” Shiro says. “You didn’t even know it was _me_. And if you had, how would you have gotten to me from halfway across the universe? How would _anyone_?”

He’s right, of course he’s right, but that doesn’t stop Lance’s heart from aching, his mind from screaming at him that he should have done more, should be better. Should be _more_.

Shiro cups his hands around Lance’s ears, thumbs still stroking oh so gently over his cheeks. “Hey, come on,” he says. “Look at me?”

It’s hard, it’s so hard, but Lance would do anything for Shiro, would confront his greatest nightmares and more. So slowly, cautiously, he peels his eyes open and looks up at Shiro’s face.

“There you are,” Shiro says, soft, fond.

And Lance sucks in a breath, overwhelmed. He has never seen Shiro smile quite like this before, like he’s trying to compete with a goddamn sun.

“Lance-“ he stops, laughs. Shakes his head like he can’t believe what’s happening but like he’s fucking _happy_ about it. “Lance there probably isn’t anything I can say to convince you that I’m not upset. I know how you get. So let me show you.”

Lance’s brow furrows in confusion. “Show me?”

“Yeah,” Shiro nods, still smiling. “We don’t know each other well yet, I know that. But I know that you miss your family terribly and yet you still make sure all the rest of us aren’t feeling lonely. And I know that you can focus on making a perfect shot even when a mission is going to shit around you. And that you work twice as hard as everyone else at everything you do because you’re determined not to fail, not to make mistakes, not to let anyone get hurt. And-” Shiro pauses, gaze lowering for a moment before he looks back up, a little shy and a lot determined. “And I _want_ to know everything about you. How you learned to fly and why you love the water and how you got _your_ scars, all the ones before we met, and what your favorite food is and where you go when you’re happy or sad or angry. Everything.”

Lance is shaking, lips quivering as he keeps crying and his heart pounds in his chest. This can’t be real, there’s no way.

Shiro’s smile goes soft and a little sad and he traces a finger across the scar on Lance’s nose, a mirror to his own face. “These scars say your my _soulmate_ ,” he says. “Give me the chance to prove that I’m not upset about that, that I’m happy it’s _you_ because you’re _perfect_ for me. The universe says so, Lance. You can’t argue with the universe.”

Lance laughs, he can’t help it. Shiro’s eyes are sparkling with mirth and he made a freaking _joke_ , Shiro never makes jokes, but he made one for Lance and he _wants_ to be Lance’s soulmate, wants to explore this mystical, fated _thing_ between them, and when has Lance ever been able to say no to Shiro? “Okay,” he says, nodding. “Okay.”

“Yeah?” Shiro asks, face brightening.

Lance works up a smile, watery and shaky, but it must be good enough because Shiro’s answering smile is _dazzling_. “Yeah, let’s do this.”

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [tumblr](https://zacekova.tumblr.com/). I take prompts!


End file.
